Takeaway #1: The team is impressing.
Day six of training camp, Wednesday, Sept. 4, was an incredible day on the ice with high energy as well as players taking big steps in their individual games. The players are making the decisions tough for coaches moving forward and Head Coach Kevin Hartzell couldn’t be more excited, “I thought it was a fantastic day and saw a lot of high-end stuff. Michael Kull buried pucks in big moments, Noah Mertz took a big step in his defense fundamentals, and Damon Bickler has shown he has the fundamentals to be a high-level player. That’s just a few players but everyone stood out and our goalies impress me too the team is on a great track.”
Takeaway #2: Everyone took another big step.
Assistant Coach Kyle McKenzie took notice on how exciting the team is to watch and the continued step everyone is taking, “The defense took a big step today and the forwards as well. It’s so much fun to watch the guys take what we’re saying and apply it on the ice, and everyone is doing a great job of that. The compete level is high between the boys, and you can tell the chemistry is starting to come together as well.”
Takeaway #3: Exciting week upcoming in Albuquerque.
The Ice Wolves have an exciting week on the horizon with multiple key pieces outside of the organization for additional teaching during the second week of September culminating with the US National Team- NTDP games on Sept. 13 & 14. Assistant Coach Vinny Bohn can see the excitement building on the ice, “In my opinion this is the most exciting week in Albuquerque that we’ve had in a long time, with everyone coming in as well as the games. The guys are excited and there’s a lot of energy in practice.”